Under The Weather
by saraj8ne
Summary: To put it lightly, he had a cold. To put it how he felt, however… well he felt like he was going to die. Not literally, of course. More of the slow-burning "the devil is sucking out my soul" type of sick. But to make matters just a little worse and the young vikings shoulders sink just a little lower, dragons had been slowly disappearing from their islands- set during RttE smtime


**Note: Yes, I know I have two other uncompleted projects, both which I am rewriting a bit. And yes I should finish those first. But no, I will not, because I don't feel up to facing the two of them right now. So, instead, please enjoy this little piece.**

 **I've read at least a gabillion of these where Hiccup is sick and all, but I thought I'd just go at it myself. Satisfy my needs and all.**

 **Please review with any critique or PM me if you have any prompts or ideas you think I'd enjoy writing or you would enjoy reading.**

To put it lightly, he had a cold. To put it how he felt, however… well he felt like he was _going to_ _ **die**_. Not literally, of course. More of the slow-burning " _the devil is sucking out my soul_ " type of sick. But to make matters just a little worse and the young vikings shoulders sink just a little lower, dragons had been slowly disappearing from their islands, and it was his responsibility to find out why. They could have migrated, of course, though neither was the date close to that season, but whole species would have left at once, not just the casual and random handful. The numbers on their census' had been dropping at a gradual rate over the past month or so, but numbers weren't what bothered Hiccup and his friends. What bothered them was _why_ the dragons were disappearing, not to mention _how_ they seemed to just up-and-vanish, but moreover where they were now. The dragon riders had recounted half-a-dozen times, but the numbers were only dropping further.

"What are we going to do?" Astrid had asked Hiccup when he and his husky friend, Fishlegs (who had first noticed something wasn't right), alerted the rest of the group of Dragon Riders to their findings.

"I don't know yet, there just isn't enough information." Hiccup had then let out a heavy sigh and set the uneaten drumstick of chicken back down onto his plate. "I'll think about it some more tonight, but for now let's all plan on doing some searching with our dragons tomorrow. We'll visit the closer islands first and look for any sort of clue as to what's happening out there." The expression on his face was a weak and bitter one, though partly because the smell of the food had upturned his stomach, even though he had only eaten a small breakfast early that morning.

Across the table, the twins were busily-and messily-shoving their dinner into their mouths, making even Snotlout's disturbingly loud and obnoxious chewing seem to be nothing less than that of royalty. "Let's all meet in front of the training center tomorrow, first thing in the morning." The viking stood up, pushing his stool back from the table. A small knot twisted in the boy's stomach at the motion.

"Oh, are you not eating that? Because I will." Tuffnut grabbed the drumstick from Hiccups plate and drove it into his mouth, sucking and biting loudly on the greasy meat. Walking over from the round table showcasing their dinner meal, Fishlegs gave a theatrical gag in response to Tuffnuts revolting performance.

"That's just…" Astrid stuck out her tongue in a disturbed sort of way.

Hiccup tapped his good foot on the ground. "Were any of you listening to what I just said?"

"Yeah, yeah, we got it." Snotlout mumbled through a mouth full of food. "Tomorrow morning with our dragons at the training center." The hefty teenager repeated half-heartedly before taking another large bite of his chicken wing.

Hiccup grunted at his cousin and rested his plate in the wash basin before turning towards the doorway.

"Goodnight," Called Astrid from the table. Hiccup flashed a weak grin then exited the building. Stepping into the brisk air, he called softly for his dragon, Toothless. Toothless, the unholy offspring of lightning and death itself, cantered giddily towards his best friend, the corners of his mouth lifting up excitedly.

"Hey, bud!" Hiccup said, a smile lighting his own tired features. "Where were you at?" The young viking looked over to where his friend had bounded across from. "Ah hah, eating with the other dragons I see." He scratched the black scales atop the Night Fury's head. "What do you say we go on an evening flight, bud? Can't have you getting fat and lazy on me, now." Hiccup laughed as Toothless nudged him in the side, a playful look in his eyes. The boy leapt atop the saddle resting over the back of his dragon and hooked his metal "foot" into it's gear.

"Let's go, bud." Hiccup said in an eager whisper.

With a quick but sickening jerk, the two of them were up in the air; aiming for the clouds over the sea and the large, ivory moon rising just above it.

 **'Nother Note: I know this is super freaking short, but there will be more to come, I promise. This just felt like the right place to end the first little bit. Also, this may seem slow, but you gotta understand that just because someone has a cough or something doesn't mean that they're going to pass out right away. Yes, it's a fictional series, but I'd rather keep closer to a believable one instead of a "oh my gosh he's sick, he's dying, overly fluff-a-fluff". I do, however, have a** _ **lot**_ **in mind for this short. :) ;) :)**


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